How to make your home ‘defensible’ from wildfires

This is an archived article and the information in the article may be outdated. Please look at the time stamp on the story to see when it was last updated.

Please enable Javascript to watch this video

EDMOND, Okla. - Oklahoma is vulnerable to wildfires.

Edmond Deputy Fire Chief Chris Denton says on dry, hot, windy days, it only takes one spark to unleash a wall of flames.

But there are ways to protect your home and property even when flames are all around.

“When this catches on fire right here, it's going to get really hot and it's going to burn up into the trees,” said Denton.

Denton said the first step to take when building a 'defensible home' is to “clear vegetation at least 30 feet from the house if at all possible. Keep it nice and clear, keep your grass mowed short. Here we have an area where the tree branches haven't been trimmed up.”

Another precaution homeowners can take Denton said, is “a lot of fires get started with embers in the gutters, so it's important to get our gutters clean.”

Also, keep those flammables away from your home.

“Keep all your combustibles 30 feet away from the house. And go out another 70 feet to keep your trees trimmed up," he said.

Since 1970, more than 10,000 homes and 20,000 other structures and facilities have been lost to severe wildfires.

And Denton warns, don't let those fires start on your own property.

“Number one, try to prevent the fires, watch out with your grilling and smoking,” he said.

Click here if you want to read up on more tips about how you can keep your home safe.